The telco will begin delivering the new BlackBerry handset to customers from 25 March.

The Z10 (left) will be followed by the Q10 later in the year.
(Credit: Joseph Hanlon/CNET)

The BlackBerry Z10 has an official Australian launch date set for 18 March, but Optus has jumped the gun to announce its pricing for the new handset.

The Z10 will be available on the AU$60 per month plan with a AU$6 handset repayment each month. This includes "$650 of included value, 1.5GB mobile data, unlimited standard national SMS and unlimited voice calls to Optus mobiles".

It;'s the same deal whether you're on the consumer or business plan, with the total minimum cost being AU$1584 over the 24 month contract. The handset by itself currently sells for $724 at the BlackBerry Store.